


Hold Your Breath, Hold My Hand

by mdr_24601



Series: Tumblr Prompts [6]
Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types
Genre: Canon Compliant, Childhood Odesta, F/M, POV Annie Cresta, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-16
Updated: 2021-03-16
Packaged: 2021-03-24 08:46:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 475
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30069669
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mdr_24601/pseuds/mdr_24601
Summary: Response to the prompt: Finnick and Annie meet-cute on the beach. Could be what you think happened in canon or AU. Maybe Annie is collecting shells or sea glass or something for a collection. Maybe Finnick tries to show off. Maybe Annie is showing off her awesome swimming skills?Requested by jhsfg82 on Tumblr.
Relationships: Annie Cresta & Finnick Odair, Annie Cresta/Finnick Odair
Series: Tumblr Prompts [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2118231
Kudos: 3





	Hold Your Breath, Hold My Hand

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry for the bad title, lol. It took me like 15 minutes to decide what to call this, but it was fun to write. Hope you enjoy!

Annie loved swimming. 

Well, almost all District Four kids loved to swim. That was no surprise. She may have loved swimming more than most nine-year-olds did, but only because she was better at it. And she was very good; her dad had said so, and he was always right. 

She especially loved swimming underwater, because it felt like she was part of a different world, and the world above the surface didn’t exist at all. It was nice to just get lost sometimes, and she had been practicing holding her breath so she could stay under for longer. 

Just as she was about to dive in deeper to get a glimpse of some interesting seaweed, she felt a tug on her ankle, pulling her back up. Her head broke the surface, and she sputtered, her wet hair clinging to her face. “What was that for?”

She was greeted by a boy about her age, astounding green eyes and a golden smile. “I’m saving you,” he replied. Annie just realized that his arm was still wrapped around her waist from when he’d hauled her out from under the water. “You were drowning.”

“I wasn’t drowning,” Annie countered, narrowing her eyes. “I was just swimming.”

The boy looked embarrassed at this, his cheeks flushing pink. “Oh. Well, you were under there for, like, five minutes.”

“So?”

“So,” he echoed, “I thought you might need help. I’m Finnick.”

“I’m Annie,” she responded, brushing her wet hair from her eyes. 

Suddenly, Finnick brightened like a lighthouse. “Annie,” he began, and she couldn’t help but wonder where the sudden burst of energy had come from. “Me and my friends have contests to see who can hold their breath underwater the longest. You should join my team, we could win!”

Annie shook her head. “That’s not how it works. I don’t even know you.”

“Yes, you do. We just met.”

“But we’re not friends,” she responded, already preparing to dive back underwater again. “And my dad says I’m only allowed to play with people if they’re my friends.”

Although he looked disgruntled, Finnick seemed to accept this. “Okay,” he said somberly, sticking out his hand. “Annie, do you want to be my friend?”

She accepted his handshake, smiling lightly. “Sure.”

Finnick sent her that bright smile again, and it was so infectious that Annie felt her own lips twitch upward in response. The official confirmation of their friendship seemed to excite Finnick even more; he talked animatedly as they walked to join his other friends. He introduced her, with a proud declaration that she was going to be on his team for the breath-holding contests. 

“Ready?” Finnick asked when it was their turn to dive in the water and hold their breath for as long as they could. 

Taking one last glance at his triumphant grin, Annie said, “Let’s do this.”


End file.
